Mumbai Indians (MI) have made a mid-season addition ahead of their clash against Punjab Kings, signing 21-year-old Krish Bhagat as a replacement for the injured Atharva Ankolekar.
Ankolekar, who was picked at his base price of INR 30 lakh in the auction, has been ruled out of IPL 2026 after suffering a meniscus tear earlier this year during a Ranji Trophy game. The injury required surgery and cut short what was supposed to be his first IPL season. Ankolekar won the Player of the Match performance in the 2019 U-19 Asia Cup final. He was in the Under-19 team alongside the likes of Yashasvi Jaiswal, Tilak Varma, Dhruv Jurel and Ravi Bishnoi.
Who is Krish Bhagat, new MI player?
Bhagat, meanwhile, comes in with promise but limited experience. The Punjab all-rounder has featured in seven first-class matches and nine List A games so far. He is a right-arm medium pacer who can bat in the middle order, and his recent domestic performances have been encouraging. In the Vijay Hazare Trophy this season, he scored a brisk 51 and also picked up 3/33 in another game, meaning he is a budding all-rounder.
Bhagat’s stats (competitive cricket)
| Format | Matches | Runs | Avg | High Score | Wickets | BBI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First-Class | 7 | 145 | 18.13 | 39* | 7 | 4/52 |
| List A | 9 | 52 | 17.33 | 51 | 9 | 3/33 |
MI’s bowling cracks force rethink mid-season
Mumbai knew that Ankolekar was injured even before the season began. Hence, the timing of this signing is not accidental. Mumbai Indians’ biggest problem this season has been their bowling, which has lacked both control and bite.
Jasprit Bumrah, their spearhead, is going through a surprisingly quiet phase. He has sent down 122 deliveries without taking a wicket, the longest such stretch of his T20 career. While he hasn’t been expensive, MI have missed his ability to break partnerships.
Alongside him, the issues have only multiplied. One of their overseas quicks has been leaking runs at 12.22 per over, a decline from his career economy of 8.46. The spinners haven’t offered much relief either, conceding freely without creating pressure in the middle overs. Mitchell Santner has gone at 9.29, while Deepak Chahar and Trent Boult have been poor too. Shardul Thakur has picked five wickets but has gone at a horrible economy of 13.45.
In that context, Bhagat’s inclusion is like a low-risk punt, where a young seam-bowling all-rounder who could plug a gap if given an opportunity.
Full Mumbai Indians squad for IPL 2026
AM Ghazanfar, Ashwani Kumar, Corbin Bosch, Deepak Chahar, Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, Mayank Markande (traded), Mitchell Santner, Naman Dhir, Raghu Sharma, Raj Angad Bawa, Robin Minz, Rohit Sharma, Ryan Rickelton, Shardul Thakur (traded), Sherfane Rutherford (traded), Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Verma, Trent Boult, Will Jacks, Danish Malewar (INR 30 lakh), Quinton de Kock (INR 1 Cr), Krish Bhagat (INR 30 lakh) (injured), Mayank Rawat (INR 30 lakh), Mohammad Izhar (INR 30 lakh)
